South Korea based vehicle manufacturer Ssangyong Motor has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Korea Automotive Technology Institute (KATECH) to cooperate in development of a self-driving car.
Under the deal, both the companies plan to conduct advance research and development (R&D) on human-friendly driverless car based on vehicle-IT fusion technology.
The companies will cooperate on patent and technology preemption through intensive support for the core technology, and maximising synergy by sharing human resources as well as research facilities.
SsangYong Motor Company Technology and Product Development executive vice president and head Jae-wan Lee said that with growing demand for the safety and driving convenience, the self-driving system has emerged as one of core competences for future automobile industry.
"Through cooperation with KATECH, SsangYong will prepare for future growth engines of SsangYong Motor Company by developing core technology and strengthening the engineering capability for the self-driving system," Lee added.
SsangYong expects the deal to help it develop core technology and boost the engineering capability for self-driving vehicle system.
According to the company, the self-driving system currently plays a limited role in vehicles and is expected to experience growth in future.
Global automakers plan to commercialize the self-driving car by 2020, the company said.
